RA Review: A Game of World Wonders: Knizia. Also, Pyramids.

[@25thCenturyGames]

Thank y’all for taking the time to share your thoughts. And for the kind words. Much appreciated. - chad

[@grog3514]

I didn't think I would ever sell my old copy of Ra but your printing is just wonderful. I loved everything about it. Thank you for reprinting this. This version is way easier to play than my old version and it's so inviting. Everyone loves it!

[@annehugues29]

I bought this version 2 weeks ago in Belgium but I'm french. So amazing game. Thank you for this édition.

[@Sajatzsiraf]

thank YOU for this amazing production - the Good Doctor will have been made proud. ;)

[@garyspartan67]

Picked this up from you guys at Origins. So glad you still had the pharaoh edition available for sale! AND a thank you for the free bonus game with $50 purchase at the show as well; I chose Velonimo and it's a really fun trick taking game. Keep up the great work!🍺😎👍

[@Mark-jagger]

Incredible production. You guys really did knock it out of the park. This is my third version of RA that I’ve owned and it’s, by far, the best. I’ve only got the standard version too but it’s still fantastic. Congrats to all involved.

[@kreggie891]

My husband and I played at 2 just to learn the game, we didn’t know if we would actually enjoy it at two. We did a great deal though, it worked really well at two and played several games at two and had a lot of fun.

[@fredmcmack]

4:06 Those tiles look like they're chipping like crazy!

[@bushibayushi]

The game itself is a 10/10 for me. It has been for years, it's ALWAYS a blast to play.

[@vonwoolf9963]

Is it me or the wooden tiles' artwork is getting chipped pretty badly?

[@fingolfinfinwe]

Have the retail version, and it's fantastic! And in a very nice sized box :)

[@scottdaniel5269]

Been my #1 game for a while and this production is fantastic. Produces tremendous energy around the table and turns are snappy.

[@KingsElite56]

This version is the first I've played of Ra too and MAN is it such a great game. Their review was spot on!

[@VictorKolbe]

is it just me or were some of the tiles on the overview already super worn out?

[@thedicetower]

The game was played HEAVILY at Dice Tower East.

[@thegamesninja3119]

The tossing Ra into the bag and pulling it out to invoke Ra sounds like a great variant idea.

[@SteveRB511]

Great review. It's been on my buy list for awhile and this video led me to finally ordering it. Thank you!

[@inwyrdn3691]

This is not my favorite game (that's Conquest of Nerath), but in my mind it is a strong contender for greatest game of all time. With this reprinting and all the way it makes it so much easier to play and explain and organize your pieces, I cannot think of a game that both appeals to nearly every type of player while being fun for all of them as well.

[@blankname-pw3sk]

You all praise this game and this edition, yet no one gives 10/10. I'm just curious on why it doesn't get 10.

[@Webhead123]

Ra is an auction game that strangely works at all available player counts. While I don't prefer it with 2, it is definitely still a strong experience and that's a rare thing for an auction game.

[@PMMagro]

I have the retial version, it looks very good indeed. Well worth getting. It really is 3-5 players, with two it must lose a key ingredient.

[@Geminosity]

I remember the first time I played this my mind immediately conjured up the thought: "This is the 'gamer' version of incan gold" It achieves that push your luck element but removes the "everyone dies, nobody gets anything" problems and replaces the 'voting to leave' aspect with a much crunchier auction system. Also the treasure is more interesting than simple gems and artifacts. an excellent game overall and one I was fairly happy to add to my collection :D

[@joelface]

Having never played the game or even looked into it... this sold me REALLY hard on it. Right onto the wishlist. Definitely want the updated playerboards with things sorted easily.

[@iamdinosaur4245]

I also want to paint my scoring tokens. May I know what paints you used and what the process was?

[@Shad0wSix]

Not sure what they used, but I used Posca Pens. Works well, though you might need to use a toothpick to spread the paint into the nooks.

[@curtisrobinson7962]

I clicked on this thinking I was going to get an Abs workout video. Oops.

[@eduardocarvajal2313]

I enjoy so much your reviews guys ! Would it be possible to make a voting poll for the upcoming review ?

[@gdcadad]

The deluxe Pharaoh edition is primo...I just played it last week and I LOVE it! Thank you Zee for suggesting putting the Ra token into the bag...I like the concept of creating those "psyche" moments that especially add to the push/pull of this game.

[@XShrike0]

I believe Chris suggested it.

[@talenkl]

Yup! Totally trying RA in the bag next game! 😂

[@garyspartan67]

Thanks for the review! Picked up the Pharaoh edition at Origins and am glad to see the high marks!

[@SGFlicksify]

Watching this cos someone on BGGeek mentioned how worn the tiles look in this particular review. Especially noticeable around the edges of the darker tiles. Have to say I agree & wondered if others had the same problem with their copy?

[@elvaliente8772]

so, RA VS Nidavellir, whats your take?

[@bushibayushi]

Ra, wihtout any hesitation. Nidavellir is good, but Ra is cleaner and has more interesting decisions. But it's a great question, those two games occupy the same niche.

[@annehugues29]

Impossible to choose!

[@conillet]

I like Nidavellir quite a bit, but Ra blows it out of the water.

[@mikaeki5245]

Really wanted to back this but it was just too expensive.

[@Skobbolop]

The retail edition is excellent. I actually don't like the metal "coins" in the deluxe edition 😅

[@logicalparadox2897]

I heard some people were complaining the art was disappointing?? Missed me with that. The art and colors on this production are freaking phenomenal. I showed this game to my wife, who does not like or play board games really and she was transfixed by the Egyptian-inspired art and the vibrant colors.

[@chucktelschow]

I played this for the first time last week at Dice Tower East and I just can’t stop thinking about it. Such a great game and I must have the Deluxe Edition!

[@Ad3tr]

I hated this game so much. It seems impossible to actually get sets, like you're only playing to use all your chips before the round ends.

[@thesolitairegambit2556]

I don’t play too many auction/biding games but I had a good time playing this game at my FLGS. I do agree that the Auction statue didn’t have to be that big 😆

[@bearhustler]

Wow, not tried this, I've always been happy with Modern Art but maybe I should try this.

[@ClaudeAndTaylor]

Oh mannnnnnn that idea to put the Ra piece in the bag is brilliant

[@mitchStich]

What are some of the reasons that the scores weren't 10s? Zee gave it an 8.5 but didn't throw any negatives into the conversation.

[@joelface]

I was thinking about that too. Normally an 8.5 is a very high rating, but considering he was the lowest rater, it would have been worth it for him to point out a reason he didn't vote higher.

[@jonazo7188]

I think someone can have no real negatives to mention about a game but the score simply indicates that the game isn't necessarily in their wheelhouse. Zee briefly mentioned bidding games aren't usually his cup of tea but Ra does an excellent job with it. Sometimes you have a great time playing a game but don't necessarily see yourself pulling it off the shelf or needing to own it yourself.

[@joelface]

@@jonazo7188 would be worth saying that in a review, imo.

[@24Nasorangmal]

Thanks for the review! Great job 🤩

[@MrPorko2c]

Those tiles are already super scratched up. NGL I’d be pretty pissed if I forked out money for the deluxe version and they were already showing that much wear. Give it a few more years and they’re going to look terrible.

[@talonquestbg6830]

Does anyone know how to get this game now? I can’t find it anywhere for a reasonable price and don’t know if it’s coming to retail again?

[@Strausburg]

They're planning on launching a reprint campaign on Kickstarter later this year (Also Ra and Write). Chad from 25th Century Games said it will most likely be the last time they print the Deluxe Pharaoh edition.

[@wolflarson71]

45 minutes optimistic with 5 players.

[@maxducoudray]

Justice! The best auction game.

[@shockwavemasta]

Interesting - it's been quite rare that it comes down to one person pulling out tiles at the end of a round. I don't particularly like Ra at most player counts besides at 3.

[@KMReviews]

Really? How do you ever have a round that ends any other way? You let the ra get to the end of the track? There’s always one person left pulling stuff out at the end when everyone else has used up their bids. And it’s just push your luck for the last person.

[@joethomas1775]

I love the player boards.

[@toddkauk6099]

The best game ever designed!

[@SimplicitySingularity]

Where's Mike?

[@mrcoaster1]

This reprint/update has been getting so much good hype. We've never played RA, but all the good vibes have me really wanting to play this one. Thanks for the reviews!

[@MerrillWhiteKalEl]

So glad I backed this!

[@bushibayushi]

there's a LOT of wear on those tiles at 4:30+, they do not look durable at all... The monuments look very bad.

[@markstamp3937]

Considering this is the major difference from the basic version I'd stick with the cardboard ones

[@megalodon2012]

I am probably wrong but i think they were printed that way, to show wear. Not 100% sure but i noticed it as well.

[@bushibayushi]

@@megalodon2012 No, I own this version and it's without any imperfections. This comes from playing the game very often. I was hoping that the tiles would be super durable, but they seem extremely prone to wear.

[@megalodon2012]

@@bushibayushi oh gotcha, well that really sucks.

[@velderak1458]

You're pulling blindly from a bag, so the wear doesn't matter. If anything, the wooden ones will hold up better after repeated use which is a good thing. The game is built for repeated play. If you're concerned someone is palming the tiles to figure out which one has "that" mark or if someone is marking them, I think you might be taking this push-your-luck game too seriously.

[@jamesbond1409]

This edition looks amazing!!

[@KMReviews]

Did you guys paint the metal scoring pieces? Mine are metal but not painted.

[@jessescholer]

I wonder if the copy they have is one of the prototype deluxe editions used in the WSBG (World Series Board Gaming) because the colored metal pieces were the original design during the Crowdfunding that was changed to unpainted in the final Deluxe copies.

[@thedicetower]

Tom mentions in the intro that his kids painted the scoring pieces.

[@jessescholer]

Ah, you’re right I missed that, thanks for clarifying! They did a great job!

[@KMReviews]

@@thedicetower oh I missed that too

[@conillet]

The artwork of this version is a pretentious mess of colours and shapes that just look ugly together. 🤮 Boy am I glad to have the old Alea edition with its classy, elegant graphic design.

[@stevepaltrineri7956]

I know I'm in the minority here, but this game is somewhere around a 2/10 for me. I feel like there's really no decision to be made on your turn, it's always pretty obvious what to do. Not a fan.

[@toddkauk6099]

Hahahaha

[@MrPorko2c]

A 2/10? A game that’s a 2 is basically unplayable or barely a game. I wouldn’t even give Uno or Monopoly a 2.

[@SGFlicksify]

Way too many factors for the decisions to be ‘obvious’ - think maybe you’re just not aware of them!

[@joshbain8032]

I was really excited about this one and backed it. I really enjoy Modern Art and was excited to see what Knizias "best auction game" would bring. First things first it looked soooo good. Everything about the production was immaculate (however it was so hard to put back in the box 😅) But after playing it a few times i was just feeling a bit meh on it. The fact you mostly either pull a tile orstart an auction, it just meant you were spending most of your time passing a big bag round the table. It was okay, but i recently played modern art again and it seemed to just be a more enjoyable experience.

[@TheBrokenMeeple]

I'm shellshocked! :D I've enjoyed my plays so far, but only to as far as a 7 - it's also missing a lot for other players - they play it and go "huh that's an auction game" or sometimes they actively don't like it because they get fed up of passing that giant bag of tiles around all the time (no-one mentioned that in the review, does that not bother you at all?) or get frustrated with pulling red Ra tiles which feel like a wasted turn - no-one is smiling when they pull 3 red Ra tiles in a row. Now bare in mind in the UK we don't chant "RA" every time an auction starts so maybe that's where others are giving two marks on the score for. It's produced well, though overproduced, let's face it, that giant stack of wood for just the Ra statue and trying to pack the game away barely with enough room - you have to pack it in a very specific way to get that bag to fit. I do wish that maybe the tiles were a little more interesting though, some of them act very similar and most find the flood tiles to not be worth hunting down compared to Civ/Pharoah.

[@elqord.1118]

You don’t have to pass the bag around you know. Just leave it with one player for an epoch or the entire game. There’s no need to pass it around at all.

[@TheBrokenMeeple]

@@elqord.1118 and then you quickly forget who is current player without using a spare token from somewhere to track it

[@bushibayushi]

@@TheBrokenMeeple track the Ra tiles the old way (by placing them on a row on the back of the main board), use boat as an active player marker. Besides, you can just leave the bag on the table. The bottom of the bag is flat. People should be able to reach it from wherever they sit at the table ;). Oh, and this game is not about how interesting the scoring tiles are. It's about playing the players, this is like poker.

[@TheBrokenMeeple]

@@bushibayushi I get that and I enjoy that aspect, but 9/10 would be a game I'd want to play again straight away. It has fallen flat for a lot of players who have tried it lately but again we don't chant Ra every time he's invoked. How small are your tables if you are reaching the bag in the centre?

[@bushibayushi]

​ @TheBrokenMeeple 90x120 ;). Ra has been a 10/10 for me for the last five or six years. I had quite the opposite experience than you - I've shown it to at least 20-30 different people and EVERYONE loved it (casuals and hardcore gamers). The only other game I've had such a success with was For Sale, which was also universally loved. Tastes will differ. You for example rate Architects of the west Kingdom a 10/10, and for me it's an absolutely pedestrian worker placement with boring card abilities in which it takes forever to pull off even one remotely satisfying move (it's a game of sluggish baby steps). I just cannot understand how can anyone rate this game a 10 with so many other fantastic worker placement games on the market ;). The same way you can't understand peoples' love for Ra.

[@thereal4579]

I played my copy the other day, and honestly it just fell flat, I can see the appeal, I just didn't see that wow factor of gameplay. it was very restrictive, punishing and each turn was not interesting IMO. Disappointed, I was excited to get this to the table. Sell shelf it goes. TY for the video.

[@Exozik]

It always depend on what you like in game.

[@thereal4579]

@@Exozik I like many many different types of games minus real time strategy, and skirmish competitive games (a couple exceptions). I like bidding games, raccoon tycoon and for sale for example I love. I think for me it was the negative points for certain tiles. It just feels really bad for no reason. I don't mind the disaster tiles, just not the negative scoring. Also early game the potential to draw a lot of RA tiles really ruins the flow.

[@travisthomas4397]

My family had the same experience sadly. Such a great looking game just didnt work for us

[@spunx44]

Skill issue

[@thereal4579]

@@spunx44 yes, thank you for your helpful feedback but youre wrong. The game has a high degree of luck, with moderate control, my whole table didn't enjoy it. I guess we are all wrong and bad at the game...

[@jaspervanimpe5010]

Ra rules! Truly an amazing game. The new version does look gorgeous & functional, however I’m going to stay with original 1999 Alea version, since i recently bought the BGG GeekUp Bit Set, 😁 Pretty impressive that the game remains so good, even after almost 25 years! 🫶🎉

[@Alloniya]

tha art is quite poor compare to original